On stage only a short time after the United Arab Emirates said it would increase its oil production despite low worldwide prices, the oil and gas minister of neighboring Oman offered a different opinion. [US News] Thousands gathered across Israel in protest to speak out against PM Benjamin Netanyahu’s natural gas deal with US energy… Keep reading →
A coal industry report due to be published by the IEA on the benefits of new coal-burning technology has been heavily criticised by experts. [The Guardian] The U.S. approved a request to begin electricity generation at a nuclear reactor, the first time in almost 20 years that federal regulators have given a new nuclear power plant… Keep reading →
Fuel flexibility is a matter of survival for coal-fired power plants, considering the cloudy economics besetting segments of the power industry. What is less understood, however, is that fuel flexibility can also lead to major savings for plant operators. “Most coal-burning generators were built in an era when coal was cheap, environmental pressures were low,… Keep reading →
Peabody Energy needs a new PR strategy.
How much would I have to pay you to smash a thermometer and drink its mercury, right now? “A lot”, you are probably thinking, but you have a price. One hit of thermometer mercury isn’t going to kill you. You’d probably Google “mercury poisoning,” make a guess about your risk tolerance, and get back to… Keep reading →
A Joint Venture in Colombia That May Never Make Any Money Late last year BHP Billiton—along with Glencore and Anglo American Plc, its two joint venture partners in the Cerrejón coal mine in Colombia—completed a $1.3 billion expansion project to supply an additional eight million tons of thermal coal a year to global markets. It… Keep reading →
The global coal industry continues to expand with new coal-fired power plants planned or being built throughout the developing world, especially in Asia where coal remains the preferred low-cost fuel option for power generation. Building up coal mining operations, constructing new coal-fired power plants and developing infrastructure requires billions of dollars in initial investments. Where… Keep reading →
The recent downturn in China’s coal use and carbon emissions, noted in this space a few weeks ago, might be more than an anomaly brought on by weaker growth in key sectors and robust hydropower from above-normal rain. That’s the assessment from two London School of Economics researchers, who see a hopeful “new normal” that includes… Keep reading →
Peabody Energy yesterday announced plans to reduce approximately 250 corporate and regional positions in coming months to lower costs. “When fully implemented later this year, these reductions are expected to save $40 million to $45 million per year. The reductions represent approximately 25 percent of corporate and regional support positions, and the majority of reductions are expected… Keep reading →
Carbon Capture and Sequestration (CCS) has been identified as crucial in the efforts to reign in CO2 emissions that are causing climate change by leading agencies such as the UN IPCC, the International Energy Agency and the World Bank. But CCS, the process of physically capturing CO2 emissions from industrial systems like power plants, pressurizing… Keep reading →
